Learning, learning learning

Another 123 patients today. It is such a learning experience. There is no other clinic like this who has American doctors participating on a regular basis. We also give vitamins which are not available anywhere else. Last mission a woman who had not walked in eight years was able to walk again after a week of vitamins. Two who were blind can now see after Vitamins. The reputation has spread that we can perform miracles. Unfortunately we cannot. Several patients have arrived yesterday who were obviously beyond help. One woman with advanced ovarian cancer had been released from the hospital in Niamey with nothing that they could do for her. She arrived here looking for a miracle that we could not perform. We decided the only thing to do was to evacuate her to her home–supposedly 30 minute drive away. Our chauffeur spent nine hours looking for it and a full tank of gas. This sad occurence to make a hopeless patient comfortable cost more than three evacuations to the hospital in Agadez.Alhouseyni with two patients on IV.

A tribal chief has just gotten sunglasses to protect his eyes–lots of cataracts here– and some medicine. We have already given four people references for a mission that will perform cataract operations in two weeks in Agadez.

Patients waiting to be treated.